We Are The Dinkins
Together, with more than 30 years in the feature film and TV entertainment business, we are post-production professionals who love to create memories and moments.
We are a low-volume boutique Video and Portrait Photography Studio who whole-heartedly believes we should be celebrating our lives with family stories, annual family albums and printed images splashed about our homes with reckless abandon. These are moments of who you are in the ‘now’ and while it’s not something everyone thinks about every waking moment of the day… 5 or 10 years from now, your future self will thank your today self and be really glad you took a day (or two!) and made the investment in yourself.
Why Are We Low-Volume? All of your still images are hand-edited, no AI. The final images are you, just the best version of you. All of your videos are commission pieces crafted with your vision & input, editing them takes time.
Because of our background, the client experience is one of our areas of expertise and our primary concern. From initial contact to final output, we want your experience with us to be smooth, carefree…
…and let’s not forget the most important part… FUN!
We are based in Los Angeles County but service other areas and destinations.
IMAGE CREDIT: ROSALIND GUDER PHOTOGRAPHY
Heather Dinkins, cpp
As a VFX Producer and Technologist, I’ve been living in pixels and composition for most of my adult life. As a result of the many conversations I’ve been able to have with ridiculously talented directors, supervisors, and artists, I picked up a camera to try to emulate what we were discussing during the week. That was more than 10 years ago and much to the dismay of friends and family, still photography has been my passion project ever since.
During our roadtrips, I lean towards landscapes and nature, but in my day-to-day, much like we tell many different genres with VFX, as a photographer I find most all subjects fascinating and want to capture a story within a single frame. Of course, I’ve also been know to “go home” and glam up a shot or two with VFX.
I’m a member of a bunch of different image-based societies and I’ve listed them here in case you’re a member of them too! Visual Effects Society (VES), Producers Guild of America (PGA), Professional Photographer’s Association (PPA), Professional Photographers of California (PPC) and Professional Photographers of Los Angeles County (PPLAC).
Brian Dinkins
After Heather and I got married, it wasn’t long till Heather shoved a camera in my hand, and even though she wanted me taking photos with her, I kept finding myself switching the camera to video. Which is not too surprising given I have worked in post production TV and film for 20+ years. I guess I need more than one frame to tell a story.
So I started shooting, editing, color grading, and creating small visual effects. Taking what I had learned from directors, and picture editors working in TV production, I would go replicate it on my own using my family. In doing this, I’ve developed an understanding of the tools used to tell a story, and even when there was no story, which was the case with my family. To this day, I still can’t get them to use a script.
Let’s Start Collaborating!
Not comfortable in front of a camera? If it’s not where you live everyday, it’s normal to feel that way. Our process will help you feel much more relaxed by the time your day arrives. After we’ve met in person, ironed out some details, helped pick out wardrobe or props, reviewed places in your home for Wall Art or found the perfect spot for your Family Video, it reduces that anxiety. Then you feel like you’re working with a friend and we’re just “having a conversation”. How do we do that? So glad you asked!
The process is straight-forward, but along the way we learn about you and you learn about us!
During our visits your initial goals could change so this is why it’s really important for us to meet in person!
Read on for all the details about what we’ll talk about during your Complimentary 15-Minute Consultation.
Complimentary 15-Minute Consultation
Whether you’re inquiring for a photoshoot, video or both - we’ll receive all the info we need to call you back and setup a time to meet online or over the phone and talk a bit further to help answer any initial questions you may have.
Why online?
Phone calls work too, but we really like to get as much face time as we can with everyone we meet. With our challenging L.A. traffic, geography, schedules and life - it’s the easiest way for you to get in touch with us and find out more. We can meet via Zoom or Facetime. Let us know which one you prefer!
Can we do our initial consultation on the same day we reach out?
If we can - absolutely, yes. Once our client sessions are completed for the day, we will happily reply to any emails, text messages or phone calls within normal business hours, but please give us 24 hours to reply.
What will we cover in these meetings?
This is your time to ask us all the hard questions, but we shoot with the end goal in mind so the most common discussion topics for Photography is your preferred Photography Style and Wardrobe Ideas along with Investment Pricing and Schedule. Just as there are no two families alike, neither are your homes. Everyone has different size walls and taste so we will spend time potentially identifying where you would like to celebrate your life by showing off your fabulous family each and every day.
The discussion session for Video has a lot more avenues to explore, but for Family Stories we start by chatting about your initial need or concept and project details. Based on that info we’ll be able to provide you a ballpark Investment Price.
After our initial chat - if you want to move forward, we’ll end our call by…
setting up a date & time for your 90-Minute In-Home Consultation along with
sending you an invoice for our initial Session Fee.
If we’re (also?) discussing a Video project -
we ‘ll send you a questionnaire to help you fill in some the necessary information ahead of time.
IMPORTANT: The Session Fee for either service must be paid in full no less than 48 hours prior to your scheduled In-Home Consultation.
If you want to learn all the details about what to expect, visit our Photography and Video Experience links!